Target game

ABSTRACT

An improved ring toss target game and method of playing a ring toss target game utilizes a target assembly including two elongate members that are releasably connected together in an intersecting relationship, wherein each of the two elongate members has a plurality of posts projecting perpendicularly from a plane defined by the intersecting elongate members. In accordance with certain variations of the invention, the posts may be of different heights and the target assembly can be made of material that allows the target assembly to float on water.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims benefit under 35 U.S.C. §119(e) of provisionalapplication Ser. No. 61/334,366, filed May 13, 2010, entitled “TARGETGAME,” the entire contents of which are incorporated herein byreference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to games, and more particular to game apparatusin which a ring or other circumscriptive element is tossed or throwntoward and onto pegs or posts.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Games and game apparatus comprising simple posts that are driven intothe ground or more elaborate target assemblies having single or multipleposts and rings or other circumscriptive elements that are tossed towardthe post or posts with the objective of circumscribing the post with thering or other circumscriptive element are numerous and have been knownfor well over a century. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 626,328 issued Jun.6, 1899 to Kroscher and Olsen describes a game apparatus having a boardor base and a series of pins that project upwardly from the board orbase. Rings are tossed at the pins with the object of the game being tocircumscribe the pins with the combination rings. Other game apparatusesinvolving rings that are tossed at a target assembly include U.S. Pat.No. 3,823,942 to Duncan, U.S. Pat. No. 4,180,266 to Morin et al., U.S.Pat. No. 4,198,048 to Rathert and U.S. Patent Application PublicationNo. 2005/0006846 to Roy. The target assemblies in these patent documentsinclude a cross-shaped element and pegs or posts that project upwardlyfrom an end of each of the four arms of a cross-shaped element, withMorin et al., Duncan and Roy also including a center post that projectsupwardly from the intersection or center of the cross-shaped element.U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2006/0097454 to Mattsondescribes a yard ring-a-peg game which includes pegs or stakes that canbe driven into the ground and a plurality of rings.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The improved tossing target game of this invention includes a targetassembly having two elongate members that are releasably connectedtogether in an intersecting relationship, with each of the two elongatemembers having a plurality of posts projecting perpendicularly from aplane defined by the intersecting elongate members.

The improved arrangement provides enhanced portability for a targetassembly of any given size, and also allows reconfiguration of the gameapparatus in non-intersecting arrangements.

The invention also pertains to a method of playing a game by providing atarget assembly having two elongate members that are releasablyconnected together in an intersecting relationship, with each of the twoelongate members having a plurality of posts projecting perpendicularlyfrom a plane defined by the intersecting elongate members, and tossing acircumscriptive element at the target assembly, with the objective ofthe game being to accrue points associated with circumscription of oneor more of the posts by the tossed circumscriptive element.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING

FIG. 1 illustrates, in perspective view, a tossing game set or kitcomprising a plurality of target assemblies and a plurality ofcircumscriptive elements for circumscribing posts projecting from thetarget assemblies.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the target assemblies floating onwater.

FIG. 3 is an elevational view in partial cross-section showing anembodiment in which posts are threaded onto a target assembly.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Shown in FIG. 1 is an example of a complete tossing target game set thatincludes two target assemblies in accordance with the invention 10A and10B, and eight circumscriptive elements or rings 12.

Each of the target assemblies 10A and 10B includes two elongate members14, 16 that are connected together in an intersecting relationship.Various fasteners may be employed for releasably or non-releasablyconnecting the elongate members 14 and 16 together. For example,threaded fasteners, clips, friction fit connections, snap connections,and various other mechanical fastening means may be employed forreleasably connecting elongate members 14 and 16 together. Desirably,the means employed for releasably connecting members 14 and 16 togetherallow target assemblies 10A and 10B to be easily assembled for use andeasily dissembled for storage or transportation.

Projecting perpendicularly from each of elongate members 14 and 16 are aplurality of posts 20 and 22. In the illustrated embodiment, targetassembly 10A includes four tall posts 20, each located at or adjacent acorresponding end of each of the members 14 and 16, and fourintermediate height posts 22, each located intermediate between one ofthe tall posts 20 and the center of the elongate members 14, 16. In theillustrated embodiment, there is also provided a short center post 24.The various posts 20, 22 and 24 may be permanently affixed to members 14and 16, or may be releasably connected to members 14 and 16 as desired,such as by a threaded connection. While the posts 20, 22 and 24 in theillustrated embodiment are of different heights, posts 22 being of aheight intermediate between the shorter height of center post 24 and thegreater height of end post 20, other arrangements are possible.

In accordance with an embodiment of the invention in which the targetassemblies are capable of being floated on water, the elongate members14 and 16 are comprised of wood, and have threaded female plasticinserts 70 for receiving a threaded male end 72 of posts 20, 22 and 24.As an example, post 20 may be made of polyvinylchloride (PVC) tubing andthe threaded male end can be a threaded plug affixed to the lower end ofposts 20, 22 and/or 24. This arrangement allows wood members 14 and 16to be provided with a water proof or water-resistant coating with thefemale inserts 70 be subsequently affixed to members 14 and 16 tofacilitate releasable connection of posts 20, 22 and/or 24 to members 14and 16 without wearing or abrading the threaded receiving sockets of theelongate members 14 and 16 during attachment and disconnection of posts20, 22 and/or 24.

Providing a TARGET GAME set as described herein, that is, in accordancewith certain embodiments, floatable on water, provides greater varietyin the way the game set can be used. For example, at a beach or at aswimming pool, the game can be played either on the ground or on thewater increasing the potential for fun and variety in activity.

The illustrated circumscriptive elements 12 are rings. However, othercircumscriptive elements, such as those outlining different shapes suchas triangles, squares, other polygons, stars, etc., may be used. Thespacing between posts and the circumscriptive elements 12 can beconfigured so that they circumscribe two adjacent posts, but no morethan two adjacent posts, such as adjacent posts 20 and 22 or adjacentposts 22 and 24. This is desirable because it provides enhanced scoringopportunities. The circumscriptive elements 12 may be made of generallyany suitable material. However, in order to reduce the potential forinjury, rubber, or other elastomeric or plastic circumscriptive elementsare preferred. Rope or rope-like materials may also be used. Metal orwooden circumscriptive elements may also be employed.

In the illustrated embodiment, the posts are arranged in intersectingrows along each of the elongate members 14 and 16, and the posts 20, 22and 24 along each of the rows are equally spaced apart. However, theposts 20, 22 and 24 may be arranged so that they are not equally spacedapart. Also, in the illustrated embodiment, each circumscribing element12 is configured to allow it to circumscribe either one post or twoadjacent posts. Each row includes five posts, including one commoncenter post 24, which is located at the intersection of the elongatemembers 14 and 16.

One method of playing a game using the illustrated target assemblies andcircumscriptive elements involves tossing a plurality of circumscriptiveelements, one at a time, at a target assembly, with the objective ofhaving the circumscriptive element land or come to rest, circumscribingone or more of the posts 20, 22 and/or 24. A method of playing the gamefurther comprises keeping score by assigning a point value forcircumscribing a post or more than one post at the conclusion of a toss,with the score for the toss being zero if none of the posts arecircumscribed by the tossed circumscriptive element, the point value ofa single circumscribed post, or the sum of the point values of twoadjacent circumscribed posts. Center post 24 may have a designatednominal point value when the circumscriptive element circumscribes thecenter post and an adjacent post, and a value that is an integermultiple of the nominal point value when only center post 24 iscircumscribed. The integer multiple can be a fixed multiplier determinedbefore the start of the game or could be randomly determined during thegame, such as with the roll of a die. The point value of posts 22adjacent to center post 24 is generally less than that of center post 24and the point value of the posts 20, most distant from center post 24,is typically less than that of post 22. As an option, the method ofplaying the game may include a second step in which point accrual iscontingent on correctly answering a randomly selected question orperforming a randomly selected task. The randomly selectable questionsand/or randomly selectable tasks can be printed or written on a card andthe card can be arranged in a stack or deck 60.

Elongate members 14 and 16, as well as posts 20, 22 and 24, can be madeof any suitable material, but are preferably made of plastic, wood or acombination thereof. For example, elongate members 14 and 16 may be madeof wood, and posts 20, 22 and 24 may be made of plastic material.

In certain embodiments, it is desirable that target assemblies 10A and10B, especially elongate members 14 and 16, are made or comprised ofmaterials that render target assemblies 10A and 10B buoyant or floatableon water, as in FIG. 2. This allows the game to be played in water ifdesired. This can be achieved by employing elongate members that have abulk density substantially less than water in combination withlightweight posts 20, 22 and 24. For example, hollow plastic elongatemembers 14 and 16 can be used in combination with posts 20, 22 and 24made of lightweight end-capped hollow plastic posts to provide a targetassembly that is capable of floating high in the water. In order tofacilitate play on or in the water, it is also desirable that thecircumscriptive elements are also made to be buoyant or floatable onwater. Various elastomers and/or plastic materials may be employed tomake the circumscriptive elements floatable.

The above description is considered that of the preferred embodiment(s)only. Modifications of the invention will occur to those skilled in theart and to those who make or use the invention. Therefore, it isunderstood that the embodiment(s) shown in the drawing and describedabove are merely for illustrative purposes and not intended to limit thescope of the invention, which is defined by the following claims asinterpreted according to the principles of patent law, including thedoctrine of equivalents.

1. A tossing target game, comprising: a target assembly including twoelongate members that are connected together in an intersectingrelationship, each of the two elongate members having a plurality ofposts projecting perpendicularly from a plane defined by theintersecting elongate members, the target assembly being floatable onwater; and a plurality of circumscriptive elements that are floatable onwater, wherein the spacing between adjacent posts and each of theplurality of circumscriptive elements is configured to allow each of thecircumscriptive elements to circumscribe either any one post or twoadjacent posts.
 2. The game of claim 1, in which the posts are ofdifferent heights.
 3. The game of claim 1, wherein the plurality ofcircumscriptive elements are rings.
 4. The game of claim 1, wherein theposts are arranged in intersecting rows along each of the elongatemembers and the posts along each row are equally spaced apart.
 5. Thegame of claim 4, wherein each intersecting row includes five posts,including one common center post located at the intersection of theelongate members.
 6. The game of claim 1, in which the elongate membersare comprised of wood having threaded female inserts for receiving atreaded male end of one of the posts.
 7. A method of playing a gamecomprising: providing a target assembly including two elongate membersthat are connected together in an intersecting relationship, each of thetwo elongate members having a plurality of posts projectingperpendicularly from a plane defined by the intersecting elongatemembers, the target assembly being floatable on water; and tossing acircumscriptive element at the target assembly, the circumscriptiveelement being floatable on water, and wherein the target assembly andthe circumscriptive element are configured to allow the circumscriptiveelement to circumscribe either one post or two adjacent posts.
 8. Themethod of claim 7, further comprising keeping score by assigning a pointvalue for circumscribing a post, or more than one post at the conclusionof a toss, the score for a toss being zero if none of the posts arecircumscribed by the tossed circumscriptive element, the point value ofa single circumscribed post, or the sum of the point value of twocircumscribed posts.
 9. The method of claim 7, wherein the posts arearranged in intersecting rows along each of the elongated members andthe posts along each row are equally spaced apart.
 10. The method ofclaim 9, wherein each row includes five posts, including one commoncenter post located at the intersection of the elongate members.
 11. Themethod of claim 7, wherein the point value for circumscribing only thecenter post is an integer multiple of the nominal point value of thecenter post when both the center post and an adjacent post arecircumscribed.
 12. The method of claim 7 wherein point accrual iscontingent on correctly answering a randomly selected question orperforming a randomly selected task.
 13. The method of claim 12, whereineach of the randomly selectable questions or randomly selectable tasksis printed or written on a card and the cards are arranged in a stack ordeck.